Now that Donald Trump has permanently failed to lift U.S. sanctions against Russia, and he’s turned out to be every bit as erratic as cynics had predicted, Vladimir Putin appears to be leaning toward deciding that his puppet Trump is now more trouble than he’s worth. Russian officials are increasingly speaking out against Trump, even taunting him. Now one of them is talking outright about releasing blackmail material that would destroy Trump.

During a debate on Russian state-run television, a number of Russian officials discussed various political issues. One of those officials was Nikita Isaev, the Director of the Russian Institute of Contemporary Economics. Translated into English, he said “Let’s hit Trump with our Kompromat!” This is a clear reference to the Pee Pee Tape or some other similar blackmail material that the Kremlin has long been alleged to be holding over Trump’s head. The host asked, “Do we have it?” Isaev responded “Of course we have it!”

The hour long Russian-language video can be watched here if you so choose, and Julia Davis was the one who identified Nikita Isaev’s call for the release of Kompromat. It’s difficult to imagine someone in Isaev’s position saying such a thing on Kremlin-controlled television unless he had Vladimir Putin’s blessing to say it.

This means we are now at a point where Putin is threatening or taunting Donald Trump by having a Russian official openly threaten to release blackmail on him on national television. This comes shortly after Maria Zakharova from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs suggested that Trump may not get to finish out his term (link). As the United States continues to investigate Trump’s Russia scandal, the revelations that surface will only get problematic for the Kremlin. Putin could be leaning toward finishing off Trump in the hope of stopping the bleeding in that regard.